Top Scholar

Chapter 201 is arranged very clearly.

Zhu Jie pondered for a moment, then suddenly clapped his hands and said, "That's right, I remember now, Hongzhi said he had an older brother!"

“His second brother is already married to Sister She,” Miss Zhu said, rubbing her forehead. “And he’s not my type either.”

"No, no, I mean he has an older brother!" Zhu Jie shook his head and said, "I remember Hongzhi praising his older brother highly, so he must be a good person and good-looking."

"Father..." Miss Zhu was speechless. "So I have no choice but to marry into the Su family?"

"Master, please calm down." Madam Zhang also felt that Zhu Jie was obsessed, and hurriedly advised, "You are interested in Hongzhi as a person, not his brother."

"Oh, right." Zhu Jie then realized he had gotten carried away, waved his hand, and smiled awkwardly, "Never mind what I said."

But contrary to what Madam Zhang thought, he suddenly realized that Su Lu and Huang E were unlikely to get together, so wouldn't he have another chance then?

~~
After class that day, Su Lu received a letter from Zhu Liu in the capital from Zhu Zhang.

In late spring and early summer, the days were much longer, and it was still bright on his way home. He simply took out the letter and read it as he walked.

The date on Zhu Liu's letter was the end of March, which was a few days later than the letter he sent home. Moreover, it was not sent by express post but by normal mail, so Su Lu received it at the end of April.

Of course, Su Lu wasn't picky. He was already incredibly flattered that the headmaster was still thinking of him after high school...

At this time, Zhu Liu was obviously unaware of the devastating news of his older brother's death and was still immersed in the joy of high school, his words overflowing with happiness.

He boasted to Su Lu that he had passed the selection process for the Imperial Academy eight days after the palace examination and had become a glorious probationary scholar, and would be serving as a tutor in the Imperial Academy for the next three years.

Zhu Liu also complained in a rather irritating way that other successful candidates in the imperial examinations, before the official selection period, would often use the excuse of visiting relatives and ancestors' graves to ask for leave to temporarily return home. They would then go back in glory, bringing honor to their ancestors!
These unfortunate commoners, however, had to obediently serve as tutors for three years before they could request leave to return home. But the thought that the top three scholars, having been immediately appointed to official positions, had to adhere to the rule that civil officials must serve for six years before being allowed to visit their families made them feel somewhat better…

"Tch..." Su Lu chuckled and looked up at the red glow of the sky. He could imagine the look on the headmaster's face when he wrote this passage.

Truly, "The sordid past is nothing to boast of, but today's unbridled indulgence knows no bounds!"

That wasn't all. Zhu Liu then boasted that the day after the selection of scholars, he and all his fellow scholars paid their respects to His Majesty the Emperor after giving a lecture at the Wenhua Hall.

Moreover, thanks to the emperor's favor and the strict selection by Wang Yuyao, he and several other colleagues were appointed as officials in charge of daily lectures and exhibitions!
Although Su Lu didn't know what the exhibition official did, he figured that being able to show his face to the emperor every day would make him highly sought after.

However, since the person chosen was Wang Hua, the former top scholar, the headmaster would naturally be included as well...

"The mountain has truly turned from bad to good, the sky is high and the earth is wide." Su Lu was genuinely happy for Zhu Liu. After more than ten years of hard work, the clouds had finally parted and the moon was shining.

Six months ago, I was living a secluded life teaching in a remote mountain village; six months later, I was standing before the emperor, presenting my work in the imperial court. Could there be any greater change in life, any more extraordinary encounter?

This also shows that it really requires the right people at the top. Three years ago, those senior leaders didn't have the power they have now.

Fortunately, the headmaster's letter wasn't just to boast; he also had good news to tell him—

Zhu Liu told Su Lu that he had already spoken to Wang Shouren about wanting his students to become his disciples.

After reading the articles that Zhu Liu brought, especially "On the Faults of the Song Dynasty," Wang Shouren readily agreed.

Zhu Liu also suggested that he should take the imperial examination next year in advance. Zhu Shanzhang said that with his writing skills and the support of the Zhu family, it shouldn't be too difficult for him to pass the examination and become a student.

Headmaster Zhu carefully reminded him not to worry too much about the major questions in the preliminary examination. After all, the preliminary examination was just an entrance qualification exam for the prefectural and county schools. Even in the academy examination, the Grand Masters would not make the questions on the Five Classics too difficult, otherwise, with the level of a preliminary student, they would basically be at a loss.

In particular, there are very few people who study the Book of Rites, so as long as there are no obvious errors, it is unlikely that one will fail the exam.

Therefore, the success of the preliminary examinations still depended on the Four Books, which was precisely Su Lu's forte. In addition, Zhu Liu reminded Su Lu that if he decided to take the examinations next year, he must strengthen his study of the court's laws, regulations, and current affairs in the second half of the year.

Zhu Liu told Su Lu that while doing well on these questions wouldn't guarantee admission, many scholars underestimated these miscellaneous topics, inevitably leading to mistakes during the exam.

Even if the local officials show leniency and pass your exam, all the papers are public, and someone will definitely scrutinize every word. Once a problem is discovered, everyone will suffer.

Therefore, perfection must be achieved in every detail to ensure that nothing goes wrong.

Zhu Liu then continued to plan for him, saying that once he passed the imperial examination at the county level, he should immediately ask for a long leave to travel to the capital to study under Wang Shouren for a year or two, and perhaps even receive guidance from the old scholar Wang.

If everything goes smoothly, I can enter the examination hall for the next autumn imperial examination...

It seems that Zhu Chuanlu is indeed much more confident than Zhu Shanzhang, and has already arranged Su Lu's path to becoming a Juren (a successful candidate in the imperial examinations) very clearly!
However, Su Lu also knew that this was not Zhu Shanzhang being overly excited and boastful, but rather a reminder that he had to act quickly! Once he passed the imperial examination, everything else would be much easier.

While the big shots are still in power, I'll ride the wave of opportunity and soar to new heights!
If it takes ten or eight years to pass the imperial examination, then the opportune time, favorable location, and harmonious relationships may not be available.

By then, all the bigwigs will have retired, and no one can guarantee that the new batch of bigwigs will still be their own people. At that time, the difficulty of passing the imperial examination will increase significantly.

But the big shots wouldn't help him pass the imperial examination; they couldn't bear the humiliation, nor would they pay attention to a kid who hadn't even proven himself yet...

In short, the goal is to pass the county-level imperial examination as soon as possible, and then pass the provincial-level imperial examination as soon as possible!
Su Lu carefully folded the letter, put it back in the envelope, and looked at the red glow of the sky. His heart was filled with excitement and boundless motivation!
The headmaster had paved a golden road for him! He finally experienced what it meant for someone to attain enlightenment and for even their chickens and dogs to rise to heaven.

But for a pheasant to become a phoenix, simply lifting it up isn't enough; you have to be strong yourself! You have to be the right material! 'Come on, Su Lu, don't let the headmaster down. Clear your mind of all distractions and charge! Charge! Charge! Charge!' He clenched his fists, trying his best to encourage himself.

"Brother." A distant call brought Su Lu back to his senses.

“Young master, it’s young lady,” Xiaoyuer said softly.

"I see it." Su Lu nodded and waved to a sedan chair in the distance with a smile.

Xiao Tiantian got off the sedan chair, thanked the maid and porters, and then ran happily towards Su Lu.

Today is an even-numbered day, and she went to Huang E's house to study as usual. Originally, Su Youcai was responsible for picking her up and dropping her off, but later Huang E said that it was too tiring for Uncle Su, so she sent someone to take Xiaotiantian home.

Su Youcai couldn't refuse, and since Erlang Wine Shop had already opened, it would be difficult for him to pick up his child in the afternoon, so he reluctantly accepted Miss Huang's kindness.

"Brother, you're out of school." After studying with Huang E, He Tiantian became much more cheerful, and her words were full of joy.

"Haha, yes, Tiantian's out of school." Su Lu laughed happily, "Why are you so late today? Did the teacher keep you after school?"

"No, I didn't. I studied very hard, and Sister Huang even praised me for being smart." Tian Tian smiled sweetly, revealing her two little tiger teeth.

"Of course, look who her sister is!" Su Lu laughed loudly.

"It's because my sister taught us how to embroider sachets after class that we're a little late today," Xiaotiantian explained earnestly to Su Lu.

"Oh, it's almost Dragon Boat Festival," Su Lu said suddenly. "Time really flies."

These days, embroidering sachets before the Dragon Boat Festival is a very popular custom. Especially in the southwest region, where mosquitoes breed and diseases are prevalent in summer, the fragrant herbs filled in the sachets are believed to repel insects and ward off plagues.

Therefore, girls would carefully embroider sachets before the Dragon Boat Festival, not only to wear them themselves, but also to give to family and friends to express their love.

Su Lu then asked with great interest, "So, have you learned it?"

"How can it be that fast?" Xiaotiantian laughed. "I just learned how to cut today, and I haven't learned how to embroider yet."

"Okay, then show it to me when you've finished embroidering it." Su Lu nodded with a smile.

"Okay." Xiao Tiantian nodded, then took out a book bag from her crossbody bag and handed it to Su Lu, saying, "Here you go."

"Thank you, sister." Su Lu's smile became even more sincere. He took the item and put it directly into his sleeve, without handing it to Xiao Yu'er.

"Third Brother, you're too kind," Xiao Tiantian said with a smile.

~~
When the brother and sister arrived home, the family was already sitting around the table, waiting for them to come back for dinner.

Manager Tian remained steadfast, rain or shine, until Su Youcai and the other two finally got used to his presence.

He smiled as he helped Su Lu and his sister wash their hands and served them soup before quietly reporting, "I received a letter from the master today, requesting that you return home for the Dragon Boat Festival."

"Oh?" Su Lu asked, "What is it?"

"I don't know the specifics, but I have a letter in the master's own handwriting, which I've already placed on your desk, young master," Steward Tian said softly.

"Okay." Su Lu nodded.

"Of course," Steward Tian said with a smile. "Whenever you decide to return, young master, please let me know so I can make the necessary arrangements for the boat."

"Thank you for your trouble, Uncle Tian," Su Lu replied.

"Then I shall take my leave. Please enjoy your meal, sir, madam, young master, and young lady." Steward Tian then took his leave at the opportune moment.

"Yes, yes, thank you for your hard work, Steward Tian," Su Youcai said politely as he saw him off.

Upon returning, he remarked to Su Lu, "That Manager Tian is truly a great guy. Not only did he take such good care of our family, but he also helped us sell a whole 20,000 jin of liquor!"

"Really? So he's not Steward Tian, ​​but the Snail Maiden?" Su Lu couldn't help but laugh.

“Really.” The proprietress nodded and said, “The liquor store just opened, and we were completely clueless about things in Luzhou. We relied entirely on Manager Tian to introduce customers.”

“Everything is difficult at the beginning. Once we get the connection, your uncle will be able to handle everything else.” Su Youcai laughed. “He’s full of energy now, and we don’t even need to go out and run errands anymore.”

"Yes, so we are really grateful to Steward Tian. We prepared a gift of two hundred taels of silver for him, but he refused it and even got angry with us." The proprietress sighed, "What do you think he's after?"

P.S. I finished writing this around midnight again... I haven't checked the last two chapters yet...

(End of this chapter)